As a big U2 fan, I've been keeping tabs on this project for the last two years. The timeline for the last couple of years was the last record in 2000, the tour that took most 2001, 2002 was a "break" year (except for the Gangs of New York track, releasing Electrical Storm as a single and a bit of work on remixes of old songs for the Greatest Hits album), and in 2003, the band has been working on their latest album with Chris Thomas (former producer for the Sex Pistols, INXS and Pulp).

Reports sporadically filtered in about how the disc was proceeding, with Bono talking about making a 'real rock record' and saying that Edge was making 'crazy new sounds' on the guitar. Rumour had it that the album would be out by fall of 2003, but when that date was pushed back, most U2 fans figured no problem since U2 traditionally miss their first deadline anyway. Then the rumoured date was in March, then May, and all of a sudden the summer tour that some concert venues had all but confirmed was now up in the air too.

And then there was the bombshell about how Thomas is now out, and Steve Lillywhite (who produced U2's first three albums) is coming in to "start a new record" as one report put it. Now there is no clue as to when we'll see any new U2 material...quite possibly not until 2005.

MH: Whatís a clever way to say that I have a penis?CJ: UhÖMark, nobodyís going to buy that shirt.MH: How about if I say that Iíve gotÖaÖuhÖ?CJ: Coming up with T-Shirt ideas is hard Mark, why not leave it to the WWE marketing department.MH: I know! Iíve got it!CJ: Got what?MH: Stank! Thatís Mah Stank! Iím gonna make a fortune!!CJ: ďThatís Mah StankĒ?MH: On the front itíll say ďCan You Smell It?Ē and on the back itíll say ďThatís Mah StankĒ. Everybodyíll buy it because theyíll think itís a Rock shirt.CJ: You knowÖyou might be on to something there, sad to say.MH: I canít wait to show mah stank to Trish.

You know, I have a feeling that Spanky didnít quit, he was fired. Why? So they could repackage Mark Henry as ďStanky.Ē Think about THAT!--Matt "Excalibur05" Hocking, 1/19/04 Raw Satire

And then there was the bombshell about how Thomas is now out, and Steve Lillywhite (who produced U2's first three albums) is coming in to "start a new record" as one report put it. Now there is no clue as to when we'll see any new U2 material...quite possibly not until 2005.

Actually, on U2.com Paul McGuinness cleared things up..Lillywhite isn`t starting from scratch, he`s just the latest producer to get involved. Thomas did some work, then Daniel Lanois, now Lillywhite. Like most of their recent albums, the same gang of their producer friends rotate.

"Producer Steve Lillywhite has joined the production team as the band hit the final stretch in recording the new album.

Lillywhite, who produced U2's first three albums and has regularly been at the desk since, is set to begin work this week and is already delighted with the material he has heard.

'I've heard some great songs.' he told Billboard. 'The Edge is playing some really great guitar.'

During 2003, Chris Thomas worked closely with U2 on new material, while in the autumn, in between his own shows, Daniel Lanois also popped in to the studio.

'There are various producers involved in this album,' Paul McGuinness told U2.Com, emphasising the organic nature of the recording process. 'Chris Thomas has done some great work. It's good to work with Steve again but it's not as if we're starting from scratch.'"

Sounds a little bit more optimistic. Pop was only released a month or so before the tour began, so maybe a similar (for schedule, not quality) plan is in the works.

I'm not sure if the comparison to Pop is what the band wants...though I personally liked the record, most fans were let down and U2 themselves are quoted as saying that they felt rushed in trying to the album out in time to start their tour.

MH: Whatís a clever way to say that I have a penis?CJ: UhÖMark, nobodyís going to buy that shirt.MH: How about if I say that Iíve gotÖaÖuhÖ?CJ: Coming up with T-Shirt ideas is hard Mark, why not leave it to the WWE marketing department.MH: I know! Iíve got it!CJ: Got what?MH: Stank! Thatís Mah Stank! Iím gonna make a fortune!!CJ: ďThatís Mah StankĒ?MH: On the front itíll say ďCan You Smell It?Ē and on the back itíll say ďThatís Mah StankĒ. Everybodyíll buy it because theyíll think itís a Rock shirt.CJ: You knowÖyou might be on to something there, sad to say.MH: I canít wait to show mah stank to Trish.

You know, I have a feeling that Spanky didnít quit, he was fired. Why? So they could repackage Mark Henry as ďStanky.Ē Think about THAT!--Matt "Excalibur05" Hocking, 1/19/04 Raw Satire

I'm not sure if the comparison to Pop is what the band wants...though I personally liked the record, most fans were let down and U2 themselves are quoted as saying that they felt rushed in trying to the album out in time to start their tour.

Yeah, I really liked that album too, but the band did say that. It`s why they went back and monkeyed around with Last Night on Earth and Please when they were released as singles, which are also damn good versions of those songs. Oh man, but I had blocked out the "remixes" on the Best Of 90-00 CD...because I barely listened to it.

Yeah, I really liked that album too, but the band did say that. It`s why they went back and monkeyed around with Last Night on Earth and Please when they were released as singles, which are also damn good versions of those songs. Oh man, but I had blocked out the "remixes" on the Best Of 90-00 CD...because I barely listened to it.

The remixes of LNoE and Please were both improved, I thought, but the Best Of 1990-2000 Pop remixes were terrible. Gone was ok, but Staring at the Sun was made too heavy and the revamped Discotheque was abominable. Frankly, I had issues with that whole album....some odd picks for the "greatest hits," and the second disc of mostly dance mixes was a total waste of space. The lyric change in Mysterious Ways was also pointless.

MH: Whatís a clever way to say that I have a penis?CJ: UhÖMark, nobodyís going to buy that shirt.MH: How about if I say that Iíve gotÖaÖuhÖ?CJ: Coming up with T-Shirt ideas is hard Mark, why not leave it to the WWE marketing department.MH: I know! Iíve got it!CJ: Got what?MH: Stank! Thatís Mah Stank! Iím gonna make a fortune!!CJ: ďThatís Mah StankĒ?MH: On the front itíll say ďCan You Smell It?Ē and on the back itíll say ďThatís Mah StankĒ. Everybodyíll buy it because theyíll think itís a Rock shirt.CJ: You knowÖyou might be on to something there, sad to say.MH: I canít wait to show mah stank to Trish.

You know, I have a feeling that Spanky didnít quit, he was fired. Why? So they could repackage Mark Henry as ďStanky.Ē Think about THAT!--Matt "Excalibur05" Hocking, 1/19/04 Raw Satire

I appreciate Pop more a few years later than I did at the time. Discotheque is actually a good song to workout to, and I really enjoy "If God Would Send His Angels" where I barely listened to it back in 97.

It just struck me as unusual. Mysterious Ways is one of my favourite songs of all-time (from any band), and seeing it changed after all this time is like going back and putting a real cover on the White Album or something.

MH: Whatís a clever way to say that I have a penis?CJ: UhÖMark, nobodyís going to buy that shirt.MH: How about if I say that Iíve gotÖaÖuhÖ?CJ: Coming up with T-Shirt ideas is hard Mark, why not leave it to the WWE marketing department.MH: I know! Iíve got it!CJ: Got what?MH: Stank! Thatís Mah Stank! Iím gonna make a fortune!!CJ: ďThatís Mah StankĒ?MH: On the front itíll say ďCan You Smell It?Ē and on the back itíll say ďThatís Mah StankĒ. Everybodyíll buy it because theyíll think itís a Rock shirt.CJ: You knowÖyou might be on to something there, sad to say.MH: I canít wait to show mah stank to Trish.

You know, I have a feeling that Spanky didnít quit, he was fired. Why? So they could repackage Mark Henry as ďStanky.Ē Think about THAT!--Matt "Excalibur05" Hocking, 1/19/04 Raw Satire

It just struck me as unusual. Mysterious Ways is one of my favourite songs of all-time (from any band), and seeing it changed after all this time is like going back and putting a real cover on the White Album or something.